Last night more than 40 children and their parents showed up for a chance at having their picture taken by Suzi Eszterhas for possible inclusion in Ranger Rick magazine. I was in charge of registration at the footbridge and got parents to sign the model release. Jon shepherded groups across the street, and Suzi was at the old dam arranging children, persuading them to be patient, and taking photos.
The night had a strangely important feel. Almost everyone had seen the beavers before, and many knew about the kits, most had attended a beaver festival. One eager attendee showed me her three layered keystone charm necklaces from the previous years, and one boy was even wearing a lovely homemade t-shirt that said “Save the Martinez Beavers”!
(Jon got so excited about him that he told Suzi to get a photo, and when she was trying to walk around the edge of the pond she slipped in! About three feet deep because of the swelling tide, but she instinctively held her camera over her head so everything important except her squishy boots was saved! Afterwards Jon was very sorry apologetic.)
The kids and parents were very excited about her work and wanted to know as much as possible. Of course they asked which issue of Ranger Rick it will be in, and of course we have no idea. Hopefully sometime next year. She was especially interested in the older kids because of the readership age of Ranger Rick, but she made everyone feel important and part of something very special. Parents were totally unphased by the release which they happily signed and gave contact information. Afterwards Jon and I looked at each other and commented that this had felt like an unexpectedly important night.
I’m hoping this translates into lots of new sign ups for NWF at the festival and some great bidding on Suzi’s donations. Now today it’s time to buckle down with Deidre and get the items for the silent auction tagged and organized. Next week is full of last minute details and the Contra Costa Times is supposed to release its article about the festival (and profile of ….cough…me.) I’m just hoping it doesn’t mortify me too much.
If you have a grandchild or nephew that lives in the vicinity, get them to the beaver dam Saturday for a epic photo shoot. Amazing wildlife photographer Suzi Eszterhas will be taking some urban shots of the dam and footbridge and wants as many children as possible to be there showing how Martinez watches out for its beavers.
The photo is destined for the acclaimed Ranger Rick Magazine which means it will be seen by children all over the country from California to Colorado to Maine.
Don’t you want your granddaughter or nephew to be a star? Bring them or your neighbors kids to the footbridge this Saturday at 7 pm. Oh and if they have a beaver t shirt or charm bracelet, they should wear it for luck!
This is what the Suzi looks like filming beavers, so you’ll recognize her. Look for the big, big camera and the pony tail. and you’ll know you’re in the right place. This will be Suzi’s last chance to see beavers because she’s off soon for a trip to Brazil to photograph jaguars on the Amazon. (Such a step down). It’s a lot of fun to see her work, so you should really plan to be there.
Not sure you should come? Here’s a taste of what it’s like standing near Suzi’s camera.
Beaver Festival VIII features free wildlife pins by Oakland artist
Worth A Dam is pleased to announce that the first 150 children attending the Beaver Festival on August 1st, 2015 will be able to collect 19 wildlife pins designed by Oakland artist Mark Poulin and purchased with a grant from the CCC Wildlife Commission. The activity will highlight the new wildlife seen in Alhambra Creek since the beavers arrived, and emphasize their role as a Keystone Species. The artist was pleased with the project, saying
“I was so excited to find out that we had beavers in the Bay Area, and a group protecting them, celebrating them,and doing education outreach about them.”
The beloved annual festival will feature live music, beaver tours, children’s activities, and more than 40 ecological booths. Initially a response to the controversy regarding the beavers, the festival has become one of the largest and best attended wildlife events in the state.
This year in particular there’s a lot for beaver-fans to celebrate, as acclaimed wildlife photographer Suzi Eszterhas has been photographing the Martinez beavers for the past two months in preparation for a feature in NWF’s Ranger Rick. This award-winning children’s magazine promises to be perfect place to show case the famous Martinez Beavers.
Although she has worked with Cheetahs in the Savanna, and Penguins in the Antarctic, Ms. Eszterhas had never seen anything quite like Martinez where she was forced to contend with trains, traffic, homeless, and, she says “one unexpected proposal of marriage.” Despite the urban hazards she was thrilled with her assignment and adds,
“Working with the Martinez beavers has given me a special, up-close view of a mysterious animal that is often shy and elusive. It has been privilege to watch the family live out their fascinating lives right in downtown Martinez! I applaud Worth A Dam and the city of Martinez for their work in being a model for coexistence.”
You can hear all about the visits, bid on her books and more at the silent auction, learn about wildlife or just find about more about the beavers by joining this year’s Annual Festival. Come learn how one city improved its creek by solving a problem humanely. It promises to be a ‘dam’ good time!
Details:
Beaver Festival VIII – Sponsored by Worth A Dam August 1st, 2015. 11-4
“Beaver Park” in down town Martinez.
Tours, wildlife, exhibits, and live music. Contact 925 283-4499
FESTIVAL PROMO:
Website: www.martinezbeavers.org/wordpress
I released this yesterday to the media winds. So far only patch has picked it up. Fingers crossed it makes its way around the bay. The festival’s a lot of work whether people attend or not, so it’s more worth it when we’re PACKED.
Something was different about this year’s festival. I’m still trying to put my finger on it. It wasn’t more crowded, I think we had about the same attendance, (but folks from “wildlife row” who were moved to the outer lanes thought there were fewer, and folks from the outside moved in to the main drag swore there were more.) It wasn’t just better publicity, although this was the luckiest we have ever been with the press, including print, TV and radio. It wasn’t just the exhibits, although we had more than ever before including a tail slapping beaver and a boat! It wasn’t just the solar-powered amplification although it knit the park together and made it seem like a real event. And it wasn’t just the awesome sewn and painted tails or charms.
Jon’s tours were more packed with knowledgeable wildlife fans, volunteers at every booth got more thank yous and donations in their ‘tip jar’, people all seemed to have a brochure and were actually using it, and there were fewer moments of abject confusion and last minute mayhem than there usually are.
Oh and a few awesome things happened to me personally. The day started with a visit from forest service filmmaker, Steve Dunsky who I was introduced to by Tom Russert when I asked for beavers to be included in the 50th year anniversary. Steve is working on the Vallejo – based festival for the celebration of 50 year anniversary of the wilderness act, a three day extravaganza of which the Martinez Beavers will be a small part with a tour on September 6th. If you’ve not heard about it you really should go read up and find out how you can be involved.
Poster design by artist Monte Dolack to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Wilderness Act.
The “Visions of the Wild” Festival celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Wilderness Act. Join us for all the festival has to offer: films, speakers, art, music, and field trips.
The “Visions of the Wild” Festival celebrates California’s public wilderness lands and invites you to find wild things wherever you live.
The Visions of the Wild Festival happens September 4th, 5th and 6th in Vallejo.
I was happy to see it offered with this poster, by a painter you should recognize, Monte Dolack. You might remember the artist best for his donation of this to the beaver festival in 2012. His leave it to beavers graces my office and makes me smile every day I see it.
After I met Steve, an older gentleman introduced himself as a member of the Alameda Fish and Game Advisory Commission and asked who we were funded by. He said we were an ideal candidate for a grant and should apply to the Contra Costa FGAC because it was such a positive wildlife event. He’d be happy to help. (!) Then the head of our new non-profit fiscal agent, Dr. Loren Cole, walked up and shook my hand, saying what a great event it was and how happy he was to sponsor Worth A Dam!
Could the day get better you ask? How about the visit from Jack Sanchez of SARSAS (Save Auburn Ravine Salmon and Steelhead) who I met in Santa Barbara at my talk. He had trouble with beaver dams in the ravine and needed someone to help with a flow device. I introduced him to Ted and Sherry Guzzi of the Sierra Wildlife Coalition and they set up a day to come see what he needed. Then a woman director from the EPA came to talk about a mine they just got responsibility for in the Sierras, which had beaver dams, and wanted to talk about beavers improving invertebrates and affecting the unstable PH levels. It seemed like beaver dams were making things better downstream but she wondered what could they do to keep them there?
Then I got a visit from Suzi Eszterhas, a free lance international wildlife photograher that has been published in National Geographic. She is working with Bird Rescue to do a Ranger Rick feature, and she wanted to talk about doing a piece on the Martinez Beavers. She was especially interested in showing their family life and the community involvement that sustained them. She said she usually photographed animals on site for several months, maybe as long as a year before doing the story. Did I think that would be a problem?
Considering she had photographed lions and cheetahs in the Serengeti, I didn’t think our beavers would mind her sitting quietly on the bank and seeing their private lives. We’re going to talk soon and I can’t say how excited I am about the possibility. I hope I said the right things to make her very, very interested.
Now you’re thinking “that’s it! There can’t be one more remarkable thing that happened to you that day. You are just exaggerating”. But you’d be wrong;
But that is not all.Oh, no.That is not all….”Dr. Seuss (The Cat in the Hat)
Because just at that very moment a group of women were stopping in the path to photograph my “HOW” and “WHY” to leave with beaver posters and I said, if you want just shoot me an email and I can send you the JPEGs for those. And the woman thanked me very much and introduced herself as a regional manager for the Department of Agriculture, and they were always dealing with beaver issues so she wanted to send them to everyone in her offices.
Just in case the acronym escaped you, that’s the USDA – of which APHIS is part. As in killing birds at airports and woodpeckers in Rossmoor and beavers EVERYWHERE. And the USDA will have MY posters telling it how and why to live with beavers.
The kids and parents were very excited about her work and wanted to know as much as possible. Of course they asked which issue of Ranger Rick it will be in, and of course we have no idea. Hopefully sometime next year. She was especially interested in the older kids because of the readership age of Ranger Rick, but she made everyone feel important and part of something very special. Parents were totally unphased by the release which they happily signed and gave contact information. Afterwards Jon and I looked at each other and commented that this had felt like an unexpectedly important night.
If you have a grandchild or nephew that lives in the vicinity, get them to the beaver dam Saturday for a epic photo shoot. Amazing wildlife photographer
Then I got a visit from 
